Chapter 194: Fake News Flying Everywhere on the Academy Network
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 194: Fake News Flying Everywhere on the Academy Network
"Is everything really okay?"
I stood by the bedside in a private room within the infirmary, asking the Senior Sister who had come to check on her.
"She’s fine. Her nerves were just stretched too thin. A few sips of a spirit-nourishing potion will do the trick. Honestly, if you’d brought her in any later, she probably would have woken up on her own," the Senior Sister helping out in the infirmary replied, taking a moment out of her busy schedule to answer my repeated inquiries. She even seemed to be in the mood to crack a joke.
"As long as she’s okay."
Hearing that, I finally breathed a sigh of relief. If something had actually happened to Tan Han, I definitely wouldn't have been able to live it down.
Should I... call some people to come visit?
But I didn't really know many of the people Tan Han knew... aside from the Senior Sisters at the Baking House and... Teacher Lina?
Maybe I should ask Teacher Ji Niang...
I opened my phone and sent a private message to ask. In the end, I received a "warm" greeting from Teacher Ji Niang. Upon learning the infirmary's diagnosis, she told me point-blank not to bother her with such trivial matters...
Well, for a Transcendent Witch, I suppose this really was a trivial matter. I guess I still haven't fully adapted to the Transcendent world.
After all, in a world where even death can be fixed with a Resurrection Spell, what did a simple fainting spell matter?
When I finished my business and turned around, I realized that Tan Han had already woken up.
I looked down at the time on my phone again. Alright, we hadn't actually been in the infirmary for very long. I had thought Tan Han wouldn't wake up until tomorrow.
"Xiao Han, was I sent to the infirmary?" After drinking the potion the Senior Sister handed her, Tan Han seemed to be recovering well. At the very least, the effectiveness of the medicine was undeniable.
"Yeah. You should have said something earlier. Why did you have to push yourself to this point?" I said, feeling a bit helpless.
"Heh, I didn't expect this to happen either. A second before I blacked out, I was still thinking about things." A bitter smile played on Tan Han's lips. She probably hadn't expected to see this day herself, had she?
"Sigh... next time... forget it, who knows if there will be a next time. By the way, you fainted in front of quite a few people from other schools this time. Have you thought about how to explain it?" I continued.
"You're asking me? Didn't you tell them?" Tan Han looked surprised, but after a moment's thought, she seemed to find it reasonable.
"No, I took you away without saying a word. Oh, and that Senior Sister—she’s the one who carried you here on her back. But it looks like she went back; she still has to look after the Dream devices, after all." I shrugged.
"Alright, thank her for—actually, I won't trouble you. I'll go over and thank her in person next time."
"As for the people from the other academies, there's nothing to explain. I have no obligation to tell them my business. What do you think? Isn't it nice to handle things your way for once?"
"As long as you're happy. By the way, should we tell the Senior Sisters at the Baking House and the Shopkeeper? It’s not exactly a small matter," I asked casually.
"Let's not. I don't want to worry them... Oh, right. I hope no one took a picture of me fainting and posted it on the Academy Network. It would be a huge pain if it became a hot topic."
"I don't know." I shook my head and finally found a place to sit down. Tan Han was, in a way, a "public figure" with even more hype surrounding her than me, wasn't she?
If the public opinion wasn't handled well, it really could be a problem. I idly opened my phone, only to find that my class group chat had completely exploded.
Compared to the information floating around the general web, I preferred getting my intel from the class group—a place closer to me. Most of the things discussed there were directly relevant to me or information I could actually verify.
Meanwhile, Tan Han found her phone on the cabinet beside her. She also needed to catch up on what had happened today and see if the Academy had issued any notices.
The chat logs in the class group were so long I couldn't finish scrolling through them. I could only click on the messages that @-ed me to get a general idea of what was going on.
But the more I read, the darker my expression became, and my heart sank. I hadn't expected to have to face this kind of thing so soon.
Starting from my classmates' curiosity and questioning of my past gender, I scrolled up until I found someone providing "hard evidence" that the Elf from Afuhemi Academy was my ex-girlfriend.
I remembered Hong Chenyi mentioning this yesterday. Why was someone bringing it up again today? They even @-ed me.
Eventually, I scrolled to a link forwarded to the group from the Academy Network.
The link led to a news interview with a student from Afuhemi Academy, which laid out the relevant information.
I took a deep breath and scrolled to the top. This report wasn't from the News Agency I was familiar with, but a news club I had never heard of.
Now that the moment had actually arrived, I found myself becoming strangely calm. I looked coldly at the comments below—there weren't many—and scrolled through them one by one.
Should I be grateful at a time like this that everyone on the Academy Network has to use their real names?
From the comments, I gathered that the news club reporting this was a small-scale one that usually relied on ambiguous intel and gossip to grab attention. Clearly, their attempt to grab attention had succeeded this time, even drawing in the subject herself—me.
But to me, this seemed like nothing more than a minor interlude.
Since I had already jumped over to the Academy Network, I decided to browse around.
In truth, the Witch Academy didn't have explosive news every day. Most of it was just people finding their own ways to have fun.
However, because of the Freshman Competition and the upcoming Exchange Competition, plus the visits from so many other academies, the trending topics were constant. Even so, I saw my actions from this morning on the trending list.
Witch Academy Freshman actually does THIS to a student from the Vampire Academy in the Dreamscape!
The various clickbait headlines were certainly eye-catching.
"Xiao Han?"
"Hmm? What is it?" Suddenly being called by Tan Han, I was a bit dazed. I might have been too focused on my own affairs; after all, the old me had never received this kind of "treatment" before.
"Nothing. I just saw that your expression looked a bit off just now. Are you okay?"
"You're the one who should be worried, not me. What could possibly be wrong with me?" I closed the Academy Network, putting on an air of indifference.
"Oh, as long as you're fine. I just saw quite a few things about you on there. The fact that I fainted doesn't seem to have much traction. Maybe it hasn't fermented yet?"
"Information on the internet is all just rumors anyway. Why care so much?" I said to Tan Han. After all, it was just a fainting spell. Did she expect the whole school to be shaken by such a small thing?
Though I was saying this to Tan Han, wasn't I also saying it to myself?
Tan Han had seen the stuff about me too... I wondered which story it was...
I recalled my conversation with Sister Bai last night. Sister Bai wouldn't lie to me, and the Witch Academy wouldn't just ignore this kind of information. I was a contestant in the upcoming Exchange Competition; the Academy wouldn't let negative information about me fly around unchecked.
Wait... if we're talking about "negative" news, do I even have any?
Aside from being self-conscious about the fact that I used to be a boy—but that was the truth.
What was I still worried about? That ex-girlfriend who broke up with me ages ago?
No, I was just afraid... afraid of... uh, misunderstandings? Everyone's misunderstandings? After all, rumors only take a mouth to start.
But to borrow what Tan Han just said, I have no obligation to explain my business to people who have nothing to do with me. Ironically, Tan Han had used my own logic to say that.
Once I straightened out my thoughts, I felt much better. Heh, being overly immersed in one's own inner world and fantasies really is just self-deception and scaring oneself.
Even if the class group was buzzing with excitement, it was just one report on the Academy Network. That wasn't everything.
"I think I saw the report about your ex-girlfriend. She's a student from Afuhemi Academy and doesn't have an account on the Witch Academy network, but these small clubs in our school are really obsessed with creating conflict and drama. It's disgusting."
Tan Han's words interrupted my thoughts again. Clearly, Tan Han had also transformed into a little gossip expert and started scrolling through the Academy Network.
After all, the Senior Sister from earlier had said Tan Han needed to rest here for a while to see if there were any issues, so Tan Han really didn't have anything else to do.
"You think it's disgusting too?"
"Yeah. Do you care a lot?"
"I don't."
"Haha, even though you usually pretend to be expressionless, when something really happens, you can't help but show it on your face. Don't worry, I know you care. I'll say a few words for you; I believe my words carry quite a bit of weight."
"Suit yourself."
I glanced elsewhere, pretending to scroll through my phone, but I was actually looking at my own face through the black screen. Does this face really put every emotion on display? Why can't I see it?
I opened my phone and instinctively scrolled to Sister Bai's messages. I realized that while I had been busy for half the day, Sister Bai had actually sent me a private message.
However, after reading them, they were all continuations of our conversation from yesterday, comforting me and saying everything would be fine.
The messages were sent in the morning, and it was already afternoon.
But I still replied. Sister Bai's private messages were special. If it were someone else, I might ignore them if I only discovered them long after they were sent, but I couldn't do that with Sister Bai.
Otherwise, if she saw I wasn't replying, what if she thought I was being cyberbullied and decided to do something drastic?
Though I wasn't nearly that fragile.
Just as I was replying, Tan Han picked up a call. After a few brief sentences, she hung up.
"Hmm? Who was it?"
"It's the Shopkeeper and Senior Sister Ying Shiqian. They found out from somewhere and came to see us. They're already at the infirmary entrance, asking which room I'm in," Tan Han answered truthfully.
"The Shopkeeper..." As expected, there were still people who cared about Tan Han. This treatment was nothing like Ji Niang's; she didn't even bother to show a shred of concern.
Before long, I heard noise outside the room. As soon as I opened the door, I saw the Shopkeeper and the others carrying bags.
"Shopkeeper, Senior Sister Ying Shiqian, you got here so fast?" I said as I opened the door.
"Xiao Han? You're here too? Is Xiao Tan in here?"
"Yeah." After welcoming the Shopkeeper and the others in, I stepped to the side. I wasn't the protagonist this time, anyway.
Watching them chat animatedly, Senior Sister Ying Shiqian, who soon found she couldn't get a word in, came over and sat next to me.
"Senior Sister Ying Shiqian, did you come alone with the Shopkeeper?"
"Yeah. Want some sweets? Let that girl Tang Yihan watch the shop; it’s better if she’s worked to death~" Ying Shiqian opened the bag she was carrying, which was filled with sweets from the bakery. Well, bringing treats from the shop as a get-well gift for Tan Han was certainly convenient, and Ying Shiqian was already eating them.
"Thanks."
I wasn't polite either. After all, I hadn't eaten lunch yet, so this could be considered a snack to tide me over.
"Why are you thanking me? Don't be a stranger. By the way, Xiao Han, do you know how Xiao Tan fainted? If I hadn't been slacking—ahem, anyway, if I hadn't seen the latest news, I wouldn't have known Tan Han fainted today."
"Uh... Senior Sister, you get your news really fast." I couldn't help but comment. How long had it been since Tan Han fainted? High-intensity slacking, I see.
"No way, don't talk nonsense. Didn't I just do a good deed? How can that be called slacking? Tell me, what exactly happened to Xiao Tan?"
"Tan Han was just practicing combat in the Dreamscape. The intensity was a bit high, she went from morning to afternoon without eating lunch, and then she fainted. It's not actually that serious. In the words of the Senior Sister here, if we had been any slower in bringing her, Tan Han would have woken up on the way."
"Is Tan Han that driven?"
"Yeah... I guess. The realm of an Academic God is something we ordinary students don't understand," I said, shaking my head.
"Right, our brainwaves can't keep up with Tan Han... Wait, you almost dragged me into it. You're not bad yourself, Xiao Han! Wuwuwu, so it turns out I'm the only useless one in the bakery?"
"Alright, stop being so dramatic."
"Hehe, just lamenting a bit. After all, you're a genius on par with Tan Han. Now you two are the 'Twin Prides' of the Witch Academy freshmen. Two Xiao Hans—Xiao Han and Xiao Han, it's so hard to tell you apart. There's really a lot to talk about."
"Don't listen to the rumors online. It's all fake news. What's so fun about it?" I said, pouting.
"Actually, I know. Fake news is flying everywhere on the Academy Network. I heard there's even a rumor that someone from Afuhemi Academy is your ex-girlfriend. Can it get any faker than that?"
"..."
"Uh... that is fake news, right?" Seeing my expression, the Senior Sister asked again, sounding uncertain.
"...It's not."
"Huh? Wait... Oh! I remember now, Xiao Han, you... Oops, I didn't say anything." Ying Shiqian realized in a whisper what she had said. After all, both Senior Sister Ying Shiqian and Senior Sister Tang Yihan knew I used to be a boy; only the Shopkeeper hadn't realized it back then.
"Sorry... um, Xiao Han, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. It's just a small matter. I'm just a bit afraid of the trouble, that's all." I shrugged again to show I didn't care.
"It's okay, don't worry, Xiao Han. With my seniority from hanging around the Academy for so long..." Senior Sister Ying Shiqian leaned in and whispered in my ear, "You might be the most successful boy to ever pull this off. Since you've already accepted your current identity, don't be afraid of anything else. Just be yourself. I have connections too. If anyone really says anything about you online, I'll be the first to back you up. Just focus on being a Witch; gender isn't something a Witch should worry about. As long as you join the big family of Witches, we're all sisters."
"Thank you..." I whispered. So this is what it feels like to be comforted... My mood really has improved a lot.
"Aiya~ why are you thanking me? Have another piece of cake. Looking at you, you probably didn't eat lunch either, did you?"
"I really didn't."
"Then eat more. We brought plenty anyway. If no one eats it, it'll just pile up in the shop."
While I was chatting with the Senior Sister, the Shopkeeper and Tan Han had also been talking for a long while.
I used that as an excuse to leave first. After all, now that the Shopkeeper was here, Tan Han didn't need my company anymore.
"Is Xiao Han leaving? Sorry, I was so busy chatting with Tan Han that I almost forgot you were here."
"It's fine. You should care more about Tan Han, Shopkeeper. She's the one who had the accident this time; spending more time with her is only right."
"Xiao Han is so sensible. Then I won't see you out?"
"Yeah. Goodbye, Shopkeeper."
With that, I left. There was nothing left for me to do here anyway, so it was better to leave early.
"Shiqian, I'll stay here and watch over her. You go back and help Yihan. She's probably a bit overwhelmed being in the shop alone."
"Eh? Alright..." Ying Shiqian, who had finally managed to follow along to slack off, was sent away by the Shopkeeper.
After watching Ying Shiqian leave, Shopkeeper Xia Li closed the door and returned to Tan Han's side.
In her hand, which had been tucked in her pocket, an object appeared... an alchemical item for testing lies.
"Xiao Tan, you were too careless this time. Even in the Dreamscape, you should pay attention to your own body."